Everything The Neuropathology Field Needs To Know About E And O Insurance
The neuropathology field in the Ontario province has really taken off over the past several years. New and exciting research is taking place everyday, which is lead to breakthrough discoveries in the field. Due to the recent influx many individuals are decide to go into this field of study and open their own practice. However, you should know that this type of field is going to take a lot of painstaking studying, shadowing other doctors, and hard work. If you really want this you are going to have to work for it, but once you achieve your degree it will be well worth it.
Now, just think about all the time and money that you invested into going into this field of study and know that it can be taken away from you in just a matter of minutes. Maybe a patient accidently loses his or her life, or maybe a patient doesn’t live as long as expected. All of these things are going to come back and reflect on you and your employees. In most cases this can lead to a major lawsuit that will personally bankrupt you and your business.
However, with errors and omissions insurance you can be protected against these types of claims. If you were considering a career in the neuropathology field you would be wise to learn everything that you possibly can about error and omissions insurance.
What Does Error And Omissions Insurance Cover?
The first thing you need to know about error and omission insurance is that every company is different. Some companies might offer a certain type or coverage whereas another company might not over that coverage. So, before signing up with any policy you need to study what each company has to offer and go with the one that best covers your risks. Whenever you offer any kind of service to a client or customer and things don’t go as expected, they are going to lay the blame at your door. Some of the accusations may be claims that your work wasn’t thoroughly completed, you were unprofessional, or maybe you provided a wrong diagnosis that lead to the death of a patient.
Whatever the customer claims, they are all going to lead to one thing and that one thing is a lawsuit. Errors and omissions insurance is perfect in these types of situations because it protects your business when you are sued over professional errors, real, or perceived errors. For instance, if you misdiagnose a patient and this causes his or her condition to worsen, then they might sue you for finical reimbursement. In this situation you would be at fault due to a mistake that you made, but e and o insurance will still cover you.
Another situation may be, if a customer undergoes an operation and it does not have the end results that he or she was expecting. Of course, you have not control over a person’s body will reacts to certain treatments, but since you are the leading physician or researcher the blame might fall to you. You might think since you are not at fault that the repercussions will not be severe, but just consider all the time and money that will be spent to prove that you are innocent of these charges. Just because you are not quality doesn’t mean that you won’t spend a good portion of your money proving that you are innocent. However, error and omissions insurance can help you in both of these situation because it covers and defense fees, court fees, and settlement fees that you might incur during a lawsuit.
Patient’s Expectations
When a patient seeks medical care from a neurologist, they will not know what to expect. It is up to the neurologist to keep the patient informed on their condition from the very beginning to the discharge. Neuropathology is a very rewarding field, but it also comes with many risks. One of the biggest risks is not meeting the patient’s expectations, when it comes to treatment and outcome. The medical professional will begin the progress with a head to toe physical assessment, obtaining a family history and collecting medical data from the patient’s primary care physician and hospitals.
Many patients are realistic, while others are optimistic and refuse to consider the risks that go along with their condition and treatment. It is genuinely difficult to meet the expectations of ever patient you treat, but you should be prepared in advance for such occurrences. If a specific patient is dissatisfied with the services you rendered, they very well may file a negligence claim against your medical practice.
As soon as you find out about the claim, you will need to seek the advice and services of a civil attorney. If you have an active errors and omissions policy in force, you will be protected from financial loss. This insurance will cover your defense costs and provide you with the financial means to offer a monetary settlement deal. Hopefully, the patient will settle out the case out of court, but if they refuse to listen to reason, the E&O policy will pay for damages for which your medical firm is found liable.
Misdiagnosis
Neurologists are just like any other specialists, they do not know everything about every type of neurological disease. With this said, it is impossible to diagnose every ailment, sign or symptom described by the patient. Of course, you have medical testing and pathology testing to rely on, but sometimes this just isn’t enough to make a firm diagnosis. Believe it or not, thousands of medical professionals have misdiagnosed patients, without it being an intentional act.
Many patients are not so forgiving, when a pathologist or specialist misdiagnosis their condition. The patient may not find out about the mishap until they undergone several non-invasive and invasive medical procedures and treatment. It is not unusual for patients that have been misdiagnosed to experience more problems after the ineffective treatment or procedure is rendered.
When this occurs, the patient will immediately seek the advice of a civil litigation attorney. Just because the patient decided to take things to this level does not necessarily mean you are guilty of actual negligence. You could have been upfront with the patient from the very beginning, but they are not willing to accept their part of the responsibility.
At this point, it will not matter, because you will still need to defend your medical practice at all costs. This will call for hiring a defense team and a mediator to communicate with the complainant. Attorney and mediator fees are very expensive and you may not have the extra funds on hand, because you applied the money to opening and maintaining your medical practice. If you are covered under an errors and omissions insurance policy, you will be able to rest a little easier. This policy will kick in at the point where the claim was filed and in some cases will cover claims arising from medical services rendered in the past.
The key is to getting covered as soon as you pass the board exam. Whether you are working for a hospital, medical firm or have your own practice, errors and omissions insurance is a necessity.
